Andrew Strauss has announced his retirement from professional cricket, ending a 10-year career at international level, the last three of which he was England's Test captain. Alastair Cook, the one-day captain, will take on the Test job.

His decision comes after a week of soul-searching during a family break following the 2-0 loss against South Africa which meant England lost the No. 1 Test ranking and also comes at a time when Kevin Pietersen's exile from the team has dominated the agenda.

Strauss played down the significance of the current Pietersen situation in his decision saying it "was not a factor at all" and retiring was on his mind before the series against South Africa started. He did, though, admit that his lack of runs had played a major part.